social wahines 2.0

danielle from social wahines recently sent along word that the group's new beta website has launched with the addition of an online social networking feature. it's like an über-exclusive facebook, an online pa'ina to meet new peeps and a way to help biz-minded island girls expand their empires.

the new features mean that sw is switching to paid memberships so, if you are already a member, you will need to re-establish your account to access all the good stuff including monthly networking events (at a discounted rate) plus member-only deals, message boards & much more.

annual memberships go for $65, however, to celebrate the new website, social wahines is offering h|h readers an introductory membership deal. it's on a sliding scale so the sooner you hele over and sign up, the more you save:

• $45 membership ($20 savings)
  secret code: swnov
  expires: sun, nov 30th

• $55 membership ($10 savings)
  secret code: swdec
  expires: wed, dec 31st

click rewind to learn more about social wahines.

p.s. once you register, please join the new h|h group on sw!

ship to hawaii

frequent online shoppers know that shipping to the islands can be a frustrating experience from jacked up shipping rates to pad a company's bottom line to the exclusion of one million potential customers by some mainland businesses who simply refuse to ship to hawaii. shopping local is, of course, the best way to go but that's not always possible so when you simply must hit the internet click over to ship to hawaii which just may become your favorite online buddy.

an annual membership fee (from $20 for the average jane & joe to $150 for a big business) combined with an additional shipping fee gets you access to the company's california warehouse which will receive your order, bundle it up with the goodies of other savvy kama'aina, and dispatches all the packages via air freight to hawaii twice a week (ocean freight is also available for heavier items).

patience is a must and, while door to door delivery is available to the neighbor islands, oahu residents will have to drop by the courier office near the airport to pick up their package.

an online shipping calculator lets you estimate the potential cost savings so if a business offers reasonable s/h this is not always the ideal way to go, however ship to hawaii does open up the tantalizing prospect of all those free shipping offers that are typically restricted to the 48 states.

learn what inspired this brilliant idea over at midweek and remember to read all the fine print before you sign up.

{via smart magazine}

p.s. outrageous shipping charges are not the exclusive domain of the mainland to hawaii route and has been known to afflict orders going in the opposite direction across the pacific (ex: a recent order cost $2 to ship from hi to ca but the company charged me $8 - yikes!) so here's a little unsolicited advice to hi biz owners - get a scale (it is a business expense, after all), sign up for click-n-ship postage, stock up on flat rate boxes from usps, and make a note that packages under 13 ounces can be sent via first class mail.

studies show that i am not the only one who has abandoned many a shopping cart after being presented with excessive s/h fees at checkout. in fact, you may be surprised to learn that 6 out of 10 shoppers ditch their cart prior to completing their purchase. the number one reason? high shipping rates.

visitor aloha society of hawaii

chances are the visitor aloha society of hawaii does its good work below the radar of most folks unless you happen to be one of its ambassadors of aloha or a grateful recipient. the program was started to extend the aloha spirit to travelers in need should misfortune strike while on vacation. help ranges from donating goods when belongings are stolen to making arrangements when an unexpected illness or death occurs far from home.

training sessions for new volunteers happen a few times a year and the next one is set to take place on oahu later this month. you will need to send in a completed application form to reserve a spot, and vash especially needs volunteers who are fluent in chinese, french, german, korean, japanese or spanish.

• when: sat, oct 27th & sat, nov 17th
• fyi: must be 18+

a peek at a few traveler testimonials reveals just some of the people who have been helped by vash's kokua over the years. learn more about the program here.

4 & 3 . . . reading, writing 'n houses

 

let the kokua countdown continue . . .

no. 4 - hawaii literacy
there is nothing like getting lost in a good book . . . especially when you're growing up on an island far from the rest of the world. and even if you are not a bookworm, well, you probably never realize how much easier reading makes your life (filling out paperwork, navigating a street map, reading your favorite blog, etc).

hawaii literacy runs classes where volunteers work with adults who need help with basic reading & writing skills. they also operate the bookmobile which brings books to kids living on the west side. me - i'm gathering up books to send home to stock the bookmobile with a complete set of my beloved childhood series, betsy-tacy (which just happens to be one of island girl bette midler's favorites too).

and if you are weeding out your bookcase before the end of the year, before you take everything to goodwill remember that most libraries welcome book donations to stock the sales run by the friends of the library.

no. 5 - habitat for humanity
well, if you are celebrating the holidays in the warmth of your home remember that the recent housing crunch has pushed far too many local families out to the beachparks (check out the "homeless on the waianae coast" series at the honolulu advertiser).

i sometimes wonder what the impact would have been had all the people who bought & sold vacation homes in their island paradise & the real estate agents who love them had made a 1% donation to the habitat chapter on the island where the property is located. food for thought.

whether you want to donate cash, building materiels to the re-store, or a little sweat equity, here's a list of habitat chapters around the islands:

• big island - hilo & kona | kauai | maui | molokai | oahu - honolulu & leeward

no.11 - microloans on maui

so if you tune into the news, you may have heard that this year's nobel peace prize was given to dr. muhammad yunus of grameen bank which is working to pull people out of poverty via microloans. if you're not familiar with this concept, the idea is ingenious in its simplicity since basically it is a small loan given to a person who wants to start a business and who the mr. potters of the world consider too insignificant to help. it's a hand up instead of a hand out and since the repayment rates on microloans are very high the cycle can continue on to help more people.

in a developing country, as little as $20 can turn someone into an entrepreneur overnight but in the states it takes a bit more. maui economic opportunity (which also has branches on lanai & molokai) helps fill that need in hawaii with their business development corporation. the program launched in 1997 and has since helped create over 500 businesses in the islands. the average loan is $3881 but loans as low as $500 are available to recipients.

something as simple as a loan to kickstart someone's dream has a tremendous trickle down effect when you take into consideration the impact it has on the business owner's family, new employees and the community at large.

meo does lots of other good things like running maui's head start program, providing down payment loans to maui residents, operating housing for the disabled & aids survivors, and teaching financial literacy to island teens.

click here to learn how you can make a difference!